Follow us

Actress and director Asia Argento created this mesmerising series of film shorts exclusively for SHOWstudio over the course of October 2006. The vignettes, drawing on an ad-hoc 'video diary' aesthetic but in fact painstakingly directed, intertwine reality with fantasy thanks to a script devised by Emma Forrest that confuses fiction with reality.

Share this page

Fear

Please enable JavaScript to view this content.

Video Comments

volja00:16 Sun 22 Oct 2006When I was a kid while working on the field a grasshopper jumped on my shoulder. I was scared for the moment by the surprise. The creature looked even bigger because it was so near my eyes. And my parents had a book with macro shots of insects including these grasshoppers. Really dont like to see them postersize.Maybe the one who helps Pinokkio is an exception.

SheSmokesDiamonds 00:17 Sun 22 Oct 2006Your daughter is delightful :-) On my own for far too long Nothing left to fear..

Se'an O'Brien01:52 Sun 22 Oct 2006oh, sorry, I wasn't listening. I saw a DS Lite in that video and that was all I could think about the whole time.

queenoftarts03:43 Sun 22 Oct 2006Why are people so afraid of you? You're a boy in a girl's body.

Sebastian Tabernacle05:35 Sun 22 Oct 2006 Asia, dear Asia, Seeing you stepping out of a taxi in front of me on Temple Street in Hong Kong on 8/15 made me so happy. You gave me a great hug, too, and I love you for that. I should have stayed to talk with you a bit more. Come to Atlanta GA and see me, or write to me and I will send you a new poem that I have written.

billy 2306:18 Sun 22 Oct 2006hello my friend... the female i hold dearest to me after 's'. mother angel 'a' of child angel 'a'. crickets are just as troublesome as g-hoppers ; ) i await the next instalment with a great sense of hope. your friend, billy23 - the portals kid xxxxxx

silvergem09:43 Sun 22 Oct 2006don't you get it? this is a movie! it is staged. what's your problem? are you so corrupted by "real" tv not to draw a line, see the difference? this forum gets on my nerves. not the films. or at least, not the same way. these diaries make me restless.

harley10:07 Sun 22 Oct 2006silvergem,trying to define one reality as opposed to another is not always helpful.The interesting point in how this project appears to me is the different paralel narratives going on here.It is hard to know wether the dominant story line is actually in these posts or In the film themselves.Just who is telling the story and on what side of screen.I suggest, as I did, you look closer at the characters on this forum.

harley10:08 Sun 22 Oct 2006my guess is that you are approaching this in a too conventional form.

Salwa13:59 Sun 22 Oct 2006this is an awesome entry, and something whether fiction or document I can take from. It answered my question, and on my birthday too! I just hope I get to be less scared of things as time goes on.

silvergem16:24 Sun 22 Oct 2006Harley :And who exactly is telling the story? Is there a script? Who is she really? Why did she decide to tell this (hers?) story? Are the characters on this forum just a mean to her exhibitionism?

acnelac19:04 Sun 22 Oct 2006It is easy to not be afriad when you are jumping outside of ones self. I guess that is just me... jumping outside of myself to do the sacry things in life. Nothing can hurt you when your not really there. Not even a gun at the head;) You are fearless like a giant and yet you seem frightened like a child... that is what is so beautiful about you. xx

passenger20:57 Sun 22 Oct 2006"My powers are wasted so long as my vision is narrow and personal. And when my will has become passive through close-upness, I fall into a dreamlike state in which illusion and reality are intermingled. I become trapped and tangled in my own narrow values, instead of remaining open to values that are greater than myself. For human beings are intended to connect with values outside of themselves and to become unaware of themselves as personalites." Colin Wilson

Pietro Maggioni21:12 Sun 22 Oct 2006i'm not buying these diaries as REAL DIARIES, i'm really not. it reminds me too much of Scarlet Diva - you know, she has an abortion, she meets a new guy. i'm still checking it out 3 times a day, but i don't know...

Lie21:43 Sun 22 Oct 2006Beautiful! The Light, The Film, the words. Everyone needs to be afraid of something - it adds character.

About

Actress and director Asia Argento created this mesmerising series of film shorts exclusively for SHOWstudio, presented as a 'video diary' with films uploaded at 12:00, 18:00 or 00:00 GMT each day between 16 and 25 October 2006. These shorts, captured during Argento's London promotion of the feature film Marie Antoinette, draw on DIY reportage aesthetics but are actually painstakingly directed by Argento and Nick Knight.

The films intertwine reality with fantasy, sometimes following a script devised by author Emma Forrest and hence blurring the line between fiction with reality. Interspersed amongst the narrative are films exploring the theme of 'Twenty-three words beginning with 'F',' sparking monologues on everything from fetish to Florence and allowing a tantalising and candid insight into Argento's mind (or perhaps not).

Originally presented as entries on the SHOWstudio blog, the comments made by SHOWstudio users are displayed alongside the films here, forming a narrative in themselves of viewers perceptions of Argento's actions and the suspension of disbelief as they follow the fiction/fact narrative of this unique film series.

Please note: A selection of the original 2006 films have become corrupted and cannot be shown. They are represented by stills and the original viewers' commentary from the SHOWstudio blog.